Justin Walker
EF3
Chasing winter storms....How or more importantly, why would you do that?!?!?!?!?! :? Pics would be good....but not worth it 
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Most dangerous storm to chase?
- Thread starter Susan Strom
- Start date
Robert Dewey
EF5
Chasing winter storms....How or more importantly, why would you do that?!?!?!?!?! :? Pics would be good....but not worth it
It's most likely personal opinion, Justin... I'm sure there are tons of people who say "Chase a tornado? What a waste of time"....
I voted hurricane for obvious reasons... You get the storm surge, the flooding, the very high winds, the duration, the debris flying around. I guess winter storms would come in second, but there usually aren't that many deaths these days associated with winter storms, other than driving related - In a hurricane, you can be in your "shelter", and get killed by falling or flying debris.
Karen Politte
EF5
Well - there's no categories for LP, CL or HP as I had expected......so I didn't vote. Also - tsunami isn't a storm. :?
KR
Robert Dewey
EF5
I just find it hard to believe that hurricanes are lagging. I mean, I have seen plenty of winter storms, and never had a problem... Now, if a CAT 5 hurricane is roaring towards me, I just might want get up and leave... Then again, I'm one for extreme weather, so you would probably find me in the thick of it.
I would have voted for HP supercell as being second most dangerous to chase, as you can get stuck in some very low visibility, and drive yourself right into a rain wrapped tornado.Mike Peregrine
EF5
It's part of my job, or else I would never want to do it. There's nothing I would like more than to sit at home in front of the fireplace on those cold winter nights, believe me. That's why I chose winter storms - because if you have to chase them, you are forced to deal with the elements and there's nowhere to go to get away from them.Glen Romine
EF5
Originally posted by Justin Walker
Chasing winter storms....How or more importantly, why would you do that?!?!?!?!?! :? Pics would be good....but not worth it
There are documentaries for just about every type of weather - including winter storms, so if you were hoping to generate stock footage, this might be of interest. The first that pops to mind for me is a segment I recall seeing of cattle in ND during a blizzard - covered in ice and shivering, very dramatic footage.
I agree with the consensus that several of the categories aren't storms at all but weather hazards - in fact a tsunami doesn't have anything to do with weather (though it was lumped in with floods). That said, Karen's myopic view of storms as only meaning supercells is on the other extreme.
Assuming we are talking about blizzard conditions - I would agree that chasing one of these has the great potential for disaster, as you could freeze to death if you run out of gas stuck in a snow bank.
While lightning can kill and strikes without notice - if you are chasing it you typically don't set up where the risk of being struck is all that great. You seem more likely to be struck while looking at or doing something else.
That leads to chasing tornadoes - which themselves rarely pose a hazard to chasers, but instead the other hazards associated with the storm (hail, high winds, heavy rain, blowing dust, yahoo chasers and lightning) pose a greater risk to the chaser.
A hurricane could easily rank high, if you are planning to get caught up in the storm surge - but this is related to flooding - so wan't sure which cat this is better covered under. Otherwise, seems hurricane chasers either set up well away from structures that could fail and offer flying debris or seek refuge in sturdy structures - so the risks to life seem minimal.
Flash floods can certainly be deadly - and I suppose you could chase after such things. Again, stock footage of significant flash flooding is probably something that can be sold.
Missing from the list is hail - but since the largest hail comes from supercells I suspect few chase these storms with the goal of seeing their car dented up.
You could also chase a windstorm - a good haboob would certainly be a nice addition to anyone's photo collection.
Glen
Susan Strom
EF5
Karen, vote for "Other". I didn't want to make the poll too long, but "Other" can be lots of things - HP/LP structure-only, Pacific coastal gale, desert sandstorm, Witch of November, you name it. If you think there is a type of storm that is more dangerous to chase than the others, please share....
Karen Politte
EF5
Hmmm. Well, I could vote for Other.....but my choice would really be a hybrid of Tornadic/Other.......as I personally would say tornadic HP in most cases. I dunno......giving this far too much thought now.....God I'm bored at work today...... :lol:
People like me who are so hard to please should just start their own threads...... :wink:
KR
Tony Laubach
EF5
Moved from Everything Else to here...
Susan Strom
EF5
Thanks Tony...it wouldn't let me build a poll in here. Thanks
Justin Walker
EF3
Well, i'm sorry about my winterstorm comment, but personally, I hate winterstorms, thats why I feel the way I do. Anyways...
I don't really remember what I voted for but i think it was for hurricanes. I sat through the eye of Ivan with Josh Wurman and the DOW's. I would say that it would be one the most dangerous storms to chase. You CANNOT see a darn thing with the heavy rain and high winds. It would be next to impossible to see any sort of a base or even a tornado.Travis Livengood
I love winter weather, I'm just not sure how I'd go about chasing it...lol, on the other hand, I love driving in deep show..
Justin Walker
EF3
Well, I don't know where you are from, but if you have driven around Oklahoma in the snow....watch out, were crazy!!! :lol:
JustinTravis Livengood
Lawrence Kansas.
People think a light dusting is a foot here, and if theres snow in the median, they're going to do 40mph.
I dispise that....Similar threads
